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Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Book Review: Filling up the Afflictions of Christ

"Few things inspire me to live radically for Christmore
than the story of those who did. I pray that this will be the effect on you as
well. The nations are in desperate need. And Christ is a great Savior"
(pg. 10).

Filling up the Afflictions of Christ is a book
about three men who took seriously the command to take up their cross daily and
follow Jesus (Luke 9:23). In it, Piper contends that "...suffering is part
of God's strategy for making known to the world who Christ is, how he loves,
and how much he is worth" (pg. 14). He seeks to explain, through the
Scriptures, what it means to fill up the afflictions of Christ and to exemplify
his primary thesis, "...that missionary sufferings are a strategic part of
God's plan to reach the nations" (pg. 19), through the lives of William
Tyndale, John Paton, and Adoniram Judson.

Piper highlights
God's providence and the importance of theology and doctrine. He includes
relevant warnings for our day. Furthermore, the reader will be encouraged to
count the cost of following Christand to persevere in the midst of
criticism and opposition, regardless of whether fruitfulness is readily apparent.

Perhaps one of the most rewarding themes throughout Filling up the Afflictions of Christ is that Piper
demonstrates how theology shapes practice. Of John G. Paton, Piper writes:
"The courage to risk the loss was remarkable. But the courage to
experience the loss and press on alone was supernatural" (pg. 60). He then
quotes Paton's autobiography to give the reader a "...glimpse of the
theology that we will see underneath this man's massive courage and toil"
(pg. 60):

"I felt her [his wife's]
loss beyond all conception or description, in that dark land. It was very
difficult to be resigned, left alone, and in sorrowful circumstances; but
feeling immovably assured that my God and father was too wise and loving to err
in anything that He does or permits, I looked up to the Lord for help, and
struggled on in his work" (pg. 60-61).

Again, Piper
illustrates how theology informed Paton's practice resulting in a peaceful
demeanor in the midst of harrowing journeys and significant trials. He writes:
"The peace God gave him in these crises was not the peace of sure escape
but the peace that God is good and wise and omnipotent and will do all things
well" (pg. 78). Piper continues to quote Paton's autobiography, allowing
Paton to "speak" for himself.

Likewise, Adoniram
Judson's theology informed his practice during times of suffering. Piper
purposes "...to stress that this deep confidence in God's overarching
providence through all calamity and misery sustained him [Judson] to the
end" and quotes Judson to drive home the point:

"If I had not
felt certain that every additional trial was ordered by infinite love and
mercy, I could not have survived my accumulated sufferings" (pg 87).

In spite of the fact
that bringing the Gospel to the Nations cost Judson several wives and
children, Piper confirms that "...a rock-solid confidence that God is
sovereign and God is good" sustained him. Judson recognized that
"...all things come from his [God's] hand for the good--sometimes the
incredibly painful good--of his
children"(pg. 88).

Filling up the Afflictions of Christis faith
building. As Piper recounts the life stories of Tyndale, Paton, and Judson, we
see "...that 'the blood of the martyrs is seed,' the seed of new life in
Christ spreading through the world (pg. 25). We readily see God's faithfulness as
we examine the fruitful results of the sacrifices of these men. We are
encouraged as we see again and again that the Gospel is powerful and effective; it
"...can and does transform the most unlikely people and their
societies" (pg. 68). Additionally, studying the lives of the saints who
have gone before us allows us to witness some of the benefits of trials,
further building our faith for the trials we are sure to encounter. Piper
quotes Paton to reveal how opposition drove him close to God in prayer (pg.
59). Paton's faith stirs my own. Reflecting on a time when he sought refuge
in a tree while being pursued by cannibals, Paton writes:

"Never, in all
my sorrows, did my Lord draw nearer to me, and speak more soothingly in my
soul, than when the moonlight flickered among those chestnut leaves, and the
night air played on my throbbing brow, as I told all my heart to Jesus. Alone,
yet not alone! If it be to glorify God, I will not grudge to spend many nights
alone in such a tree, to feel again my Savior's spiritual presence, to enjoy
His consoling fellowship" (pg. 82).

Filling up the Afflictions of Christ is filled
with helpful and inspiring words. It shows the influence of godly parents who
are devoted to prayer, models prayers of faith, and reminds the reader that
there is much more to life than comfort and ease. And yet,
Tyndale, Paton, Judson, and the women in their lives were just ordinary men and
women. It was encouraging to read that they had doctrinal and emotional
struggles, darkness of the soul, and second-guessed the
motives of their hearts during times of trouble. Piper
successfully relays the story of each of these lives in such a way that the
reader is able to identify and relate and therefore, be greatly encouraged.

Piper closes with a
reminder that "life is fleeting" and a plea to "be a part of
what Judson and Christ died for" (pg. 106). He writes:

"Are you sure
that God wants you to keep doing what you are doing? For most of you, he
probably does. Your calling is radical obedience for the glory of Christ right
where you are. But for many of you, the stories in this book are among the
hundred things God is using to loosen your roots and plant you in another
place. Some of you he is calling to fill up what is lacking in the sufferings
of Christ, to fall like a grain of wheat into some distant ground and die, to
hate your life in this world and so to keep it forever and bear much
fruit...The question is not whether we will die, but whether we will die in a
way that bears much fruit" (pg. 106-107)

While Filling up the Afflictions of Christ contains a challenge
and call to evaluate our lives, it is also so much more. It is an encouragement to run the race that is set before us, as the author of Hebrews so eloquently writes:

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:1-2, ESV).

"If we must
suffer along the way to put Christ's sacrificial love on display, it will be a
small price for the inheritance to come" (pg. 117).